(Yicai Global) June 1 -- China’s first offshore carbon dioxide storage demonstration project has gone into operation in the South China Sea. It will be used to capture the CO2 produced when pumping out crude oil to achieve zero-carbon emissions in the process.

The project, developed by China National Offshore Oil Corporation, is used on the Enping 15-1 offshore platform, about 200 kilometers southwest of Shenzhen. It can store 300,000 tons of CO2 a year and over 1.5 million tons in total, equivalent to planting 14 million trees in carbon emission reduction, The Paper reported today.

Enping 15-1, Asia’s largest offshore oil production platform, came on stream last December and can operate in water depths of around 80 meters. The oil field the platform sits on produces up to 70,000 tons of oil a day, the report said.

The project recycles CO2 generated in the oil exploitation process into the stratum with a dome-like geological structure, said Deng Changhong, deputy general manager of CNOOC Shenzhen Branch. The geological structure is naturally closed and can achieve long-term stable storage of carbon dioxide, he added.

Chinese maritime areas have extensive sedimentary basins and thick stratum, which are perfect geological conditions for carbon capture. They have the potential to store 2.58 trillion tons of CO2, which can provide important support for the country to achieve the goals of peak CO2 and carbon neutrality, according to results of a survey released by the Ministry of National Resources in January.

CNOOC has started the construction of China’s first more than 10 million-ton carbon capture project in Huizhou, Guangdong province. It will transport carbon dioxide emitted in the Daya Bay Area to offshore storage via pipelines and ships, The Paper reported.

Editor: Peter Thomas